Art Study Strategies: Push Your Skills Fast!

A couple weeks back we talked about proper ways to reference art. And way before that, we talked about things like tracing. And now, let’s dive in to the single most effective way to improve your art skills: studying.

Studying? Sounds boring. Nah – it’s not like what you might be used to in school. We’re not cramming for a test. And a lot of the time you’re not trying to memorize anything, at all! Studying is basically copying what you see and trying to draw it yourself. That’s it! This is similar to referencing, except you are intending to copy, because you want to learn. You’re not trying to add your own spin on it, and you’re not tracing it, but you’re doing your best to draw what you see as you see it.

That last bit is important: you’re studying what you see. Not what you think you see. Brains are really good at tricking us into thinking that we already know what something looks like, but in reality they can give you the wrong ideas. This means you’re going to be looking at what you’re studying a lot. Many art teachers might suggest that you look at what you’re studying more than your own drawing. There are some fun strategies you can try to apply this:

On the easier side of things, start by looking at your reference every few seconds. Look at it and look at how its shapes come together. How the light hits it. How big certain portions are compared to others. Then look back at your art and draw, for just a few seconds. Then repeat! Pretty easy – though if you’re new to art, it’s going to take a lot of practice to get things down.

What can you study? Anything you want to draw. Things around you, photos online, landscapes, people, animals, even other art! If you want to draw characters in your art, as folks often do, searching for “pose reference images” or “gesture reference” will often get you quite a lot. Pick a few images and try to draw them – it can be just for a few minutes, or a long time if you feel you want to.

To get a little more out of it, try to draw only while you are looking at the reference you are studying. You can look back at your drawing as much as you want, but each time you do, you have to pause drawing. It sounds tough, but it’s actually not too bad when you get into it, and can accelerate your skills even farther. If you want an extra challenge, try doing this and never looking at your own drawing. Draw from your reference for a minute or so, then look at what you made. 99% of the time it will be a mess, but it can help inform you about how your brain works and tends to be a good warm-up!

Speaking of, try combining these strategies to make a small daily warm-up! Try some messy studies where you only look at the reference for a minute. Then try some where you pause when you look at your drawing for a couple more minutes. Then maybe a few more studies where you can look at your drawing, but still try to look at the reference often. Over time these habits will become natural, and you won’t even need to tell yourself to look back and forth to study a new subject. It can be a struggle at first, but as you warm up and develop your skills, you’ll find yourself looking forward to it. Try it out in your drawing today! See you next time.